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Morchella esculenta (L.) Pers., referred to as Morel, is a medicinal and edible homologous fungus, which contains many bioactive substances. In Morel, polysaccharides are the most abundant and have various bioactivities. In the present work, two novel polysaccharides, Se-MPS and MPS, were prepared and purified from selenium-enriched (Se-enriched) and common Morel mycelia, respectively, and their structural and immunomodulatory properties were evaluated. The results show that Se-enriched treatment significantly changed the polysaccharides' chemical composition, molecular weight, and sugar chain configuration. In addition, the Se-enriched treatment also improved the polysaccharides' fragmentation and thermal stability. Importantly, Se-enriched Morel polysaccharide (Se-MPS) could significantly enhance phagocytosis of RAW 264.7 macrophage cells and, remarkably, activate their immune response via activating the TLR4-TRAF6-MAPKs-NF-κB cascade signaling pathway, finally exerting an immunomodulatory function. Based on these findings, selenium-enriched Morel polysaccharide appears to have more potential for development and utilization in functional foods or medicines than ordinary Morel polysaccharide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With hot water extraction and ethanol precipitation, three high molecular weight polysaccharides, LZLs (LZL-1, LZL-2 and LZL-3), were successfully purified from the edible bulbs of Lanzhou lily by DEAE-52 cellulose and sephadex G-200 column. The structure features of LZLs were characterized by gas chromatography, scanning electron microscope, high performance gel-permeation chromatography, IR and NMR, and the antioxidant activities of LZLs were assayed. The results showed that LZL-1, LZL-2 and LZL-3 were composed of glucose and mannose with the molar ratios of 2.4:2.5, 2.6:2.5 and 2.2:2.5, while their molecular weights were 2.33 × 106, 1.92 × 106 and 1.26 × 106, respectively. LZLs were mainly α-pyranose configurations with lamellar structure and triple helix conformation except LZL-3. LZLs had similar glycosidic linkage patterns with main substitution at O-6 of glucose or mannose but the different substitution positions at O-3 of them. Vitro bioassays showed that LZLs had effective scavenging abilities to free radicals, especially to DPPH and hydroxyl radicals. When the concentration reached 4 mg/mL, the scavenging rate of LZLs to DPPH and hydroxyl radicals were up to 60% and 70%, respectively. These findings provided more references for potential applications of Lanzhou lily polysaccharides as natural antioxidant agents in food and pharmaceuticals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Retrogradation of cooked rice happens in two ways: one is by the formation of ordered structures, and the other is through intra- and inter-chain entanglement and inter-chain overlap, which in turn are affected by the amylose chain-length distribution. Both entanglement and overlap could affect rice texture. Here, four amylose samples were isolated from starch by precipitation from a dimethyl sulfoxide solution with butan-1-ol and isoamyl alcohol. Following enzymatic debranching, they were then characterized using size-exclusion chromatography. Amylose solutions (10%, m/v) were made by dissolving amylose in 90% (v/v) DMSO. Amylose gels (10%, w/v) were made by dissolving amylose powders into hot water, followed by cooling. The rigidity of the amylose gels and the structural order were measured using a texture analyzer and X-ray diffractometer, respectively. In the amylose solution, for a given mass of polymer in a fixed amount of solvent, the total occupied volume was reduced when the polymer molecular weight was smaller, resulting in less inter-chain overlap and a lower viscosity of the amylose solution. The overall mobility and diffusion of the molecules were inversely related to the square of the molecular weight until the gelation concentration. Thus, amylose gels in which amylose had a lower molecular weight had a greater chance to permeate into other molecules, which counterintuitively led to more inter-chain entanglement and more rigid amylose gels during retrogradation. This information could help rice breeders improve rice quality by using the molecular structure of starch as a guide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The present study was designed to assess the potential effects of low-molecular-weight organic acids on the activation of inorganic phosphorus, obtain exact information on the acidity effect of proton and complex effect of organic anion in P availability, and determine the components among phosphorus fractions that contributed the most to inorganic phosphorus activation in black soil.Materials and methods: Both oxalic and citric acids treated with different concentrations and pH values were carefully selected. The activating amounts of total inorganic phosphorus and individual phosphorus fractions were estimated. Path analysis was used to analyze the direct and indirect effects on inorganic phosphorus activation.Results and discussion: The amount of total activating-Pi increased as the concentrations of oxalic and citric acids increased. When the concentrations were ≤ 1.0 mmol L−1, oxalic acid exhibited a lower capability than citric acid in total activating-Pi, but when the concentrations were ≥ 1.5 mmol L−1, oxalic acid exhibited a higher capability. The amount of total activating-Pi decreased as pH of LMWOAs increased. LMWOAs-induced Pi activation might be attributed to combine acidity and complex effects.Conclusions: Correlation analysis showed that the activation of total Pi was significantly correlated with the activation of H2O-Pi, NaHCO3-Pi, NaOH-Pi, and HCl-Pi (p < 0.05). Path analysis revealed that soil activating-H2O-Pi mainly affected Pi activation through an indirect path. The contribution of activating-NaHCO3-Pi alone was maximal on the total activating-Pi by both the direct and indirect effects, followed by activating-NaOH-Pi and activating-HCl-Pi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study isolated and characterized a novel polysaccharide (PNPS-0.3) from the residue of Panax notoginseng by gradient elution. PNPS-0.3 mainly consisted of a backbone of →4)- α-D-GalAp-(1 → 4-β-L-Rhap-1 → 4)-β-D-Galp-(1 → residues, with an α-L-Araf-1 → 5)-α-L-Araf-(1 → branch connecting to the backbone at O-3 of →4-β-L-Rhap-1 → and a molecular weight of 76,655 Da. Furthermore, the adjuvant potential of PNPS-0.3 with bone marrow dendritic cells (BMDCs) was investigated. The results suggested that PNPS-0.3 could induce maturation of BMDCs by reshaping the morphology, upregulating the CD40, CD80, CD86 and MHC II membrane phenotypic markers, and by promoting the secretion of TNF-α and IL-12 proinflammatory cytokines. Moreover, PNPS-0.3 can trigger the DC-induced T-cell immune response, as indicated by the higher expressions of CD4, CD8, CD69, and MHC II in T cells with increased secretion of INF-β. Furthermore, PNPS-0.3 can bind to the pattern recognition receptors (PRR) of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR 4), Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR 2), and mannose receptor (MR) on BMDCs. PNPS-0.3 also upregulated the expressions of Myd88, IKKβ, P P65, T-P65, and NF - κB, suggesting that the TLR4/TLR2-NF-κB signaling pathway was involved in the immunomodulatory mechanism. In conclusion, the immunoadjuvant potential of novel PNPS-0.3 was characterized, which is beneficial for the future utilization and development of P. notoginseng. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A polysaccharide (LPR) was separated from the roots of Lilium davidii var. unicolor Cotton with hot water extraction, ethanol precipitation, and purification by anion-exchange and gel-permeation chromatography. LPR was characterized. The weight-average molecular weight (M W) of LPR was 5.12 × 104 g/moL. Glucose and mannose comprised LPR with a molar ratio of 2.9:3.3. IR, NMR and methylation analysis showed that LPR was a natural O -acetyl glucomannan, the backbone mainly contained β-(1 → 4)-linked d -glucopyranosyl and β-(1 → 4)-linked D-mannopyanosyl, and the branches probably linked at O-2 and/or O-3 of the mannosyl and glucosyl residues. The acetyl groups mainly attached at O-2 or O-3 of mannosyl residues. X-ray diffractometric (XRD) analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis revealed that LPR was a semi-crystalline substance with porous lamellar structure. Bioassays in vitro indicated that LPR had distinct scavenging activities on hydroxyl radical and DPPH radical. These findings provided a reference for functional underutilization roots of L. davidii as natural antioxidant in food and pharmaceutical industry. Unlabelled Image • First report structure and bioactivities of polysaccharide (LPR) purified from the roots of L. davidii. • LPR was a glucomannan with O -acetyl group attached. • LPR was a semi-crystalline substance with porous lamellar structure. • LPR to scavenge hydroxyl radical stronger than that of Vc (especially the concentration < 0.3 mg/mL). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two heteropolysaccharides, BHP-1 and BHP-2, were separated and purified from the edible bulbs of Lilium davidii var. unicolor Cotton by anion-exchange and gel-permeation chromatography. The primary structural characteristics of BHP-1 and BHP-2 were investigated by Congo red test, X-ray diffractometry (XRD) analysis, IR, GC and NMR. The results showed that the weight-average molecular weight (M W) and number-average molecular weight (Mn) of BHP-1 and BHP-2 were nearly 1.93 × 105 g/moL, 8.86 × 104 g/moL and 3.52 × 104 g/moL, 2.95 × 104 g/moL, respectively. Glucose and mannose comprised BHP-1 in a relative molar ratio of 5.9:2.0, and BHP-2 was consisted of glucose, galactose, mannose and arabinose with approximate molar ratios of 8.3:1.5:1.0:1.1. Their backbone mainly contained α-(1 → 4)-linked d -glucopyranosyl. In addition, the C-6 of the glucose and C-2 of mannose residue of BHP-1 and BHP-2 were substituted. The two polysaccharides were semi-crystalline substance with multi-branching structure and triple helix conformation. Bioassays showed that BHP-1 and BHP-2 had effective antioxidant activities evaluated by DPPH, scavenging superoxide radical and OH radical in a dose-dependent manner. The two heteropolysaccharides also displayed distinct and selective antibacterial activity against B. cereus , P. putida , M. luteus and K. pneumonia with inhibition zones of 13 mm, 16 mm, 17 mm, 23 mm and 12 mm, 17 mm, 19 mm, 20 mm, respectively. These findings provided a reference for potential applications of the polysaccharides from L. davidii as natural antioxidants and antibacterial agents in food and pharmaceuticals. Unlabelled Image • First report on the structure and activity of the polysaccharide by the 70% ethanol precipitation from Lanzhou lily. • Two polysaccharides purified with anion-exchange and gel-permeation chromatography from Lanzhou lily. • Two polysaccharides had effective antioxidant activities in vitro. • Two polysaccharides had distinct and selective antibacterial activity against test bacteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]